Barcelona: First Impression

After a rather frustrating time in the Istanbul Ataturk Airport and spending a night in Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (An interesting experience, that. Blog post later), I’m finally here!

I did the same here as I did when I touched down in Istanbul. I took the airport shuttle to city center. The airport bus in Barcelona is called Aerobus, and you can easily find them from both Terminal 1 or Terminal 2 as you exit the airport. The ticket costs € 5.90 per person, you can purchase it on the spot with the driver (cash only), and it will take you all the way to Plaça de Catalunya in Barcelona city center.

Vice versa, you can also take the same bus from here back to the airport when you are leaving.

I thought of taking some pictures while on the bus, but unfortunately, the windows have something on them. After a couple tries, I gave up…

Here’s where the Aerobus stopsNice little fountain by Plaça de Catalunya

This only works if your hotel is nearby. It most likely will be, if you are staying somewhere within the Gothic Quarter or even Ciutat Vella. Mine is, so it works for me.

In fact, my hotel is just off this most happening street of Barcelona…

Las Ramblas, babe!

If you are new to Barcelona and you look at the map, Las Ramblas seems like a very long street, stretching over 1 kilometer long. But don’t worry, it has a wide pedestrian walkway, so it is pretty safe (safe from cars I mean), a lot of people walk along this street, so it is fine. You can drag your luggage along this street, from Plaça de Catalunya all the way to the Barceloneta Beach, no problem.

Let’s do a general comparison. With Istanbul, it was interesting in a sense that everything is so different and shocking. Here, some of the stuff that I see (the public transportation, the traffic, the streets, the shops) makes more sense to me. They look more like what I am used to. I think it would be a lot easier for me to get around over here. We’ll see…

And now I’m off to a nice shower, and then I will start exploring the streets for a bit…

Side story:

I have taken a lot of flights, and I have encountered my fair share of frustration with listening to baby wailing all through the flight.

My flight from Paris to Barcelona though, was the first time I was seated right next to a mother and her wailing toddler girl. It was an eye opening experience which I hope never to encounter again.

I think the mother is one of those 土豪 (nouveau riche) from China. She carried an Hermes handbag, and also a larger LV bag. The LV bag’s sole purpose, it appears, was to store all her daughter’s snacks.

So the little girl started wailing the moment they got onto the plane. So her mother opened the LV bag, took out a packet of snack and passed it to her.

That snack is basically a cake made into the shape of an ice cream, complete with a paper cone, individually plastic wrapped. It looks somewhat like this, like a mini ice cream cone.

So the little girl tore open the packaging and began to eat her “ice cream” cake. And she ate it like how some kids really eat their ice cream, by eating just the ice cream and leaving the cone behind.

That’s what the little girl did. She nibbled off the yellow parts of the picture above and then threw the rest of the snack back at her mother. And then she started wailing again and went “Arhhhhhh!!! Arhhhh Arhhh Ahhhhhhhh!!!!”

Then her mother opened the LV bag and took another “ice cream” cake out to bribe her to be quiet. This process was repeated continuously, and the wailing-bribing-wailing-bribing lasted all through the flight, until we landed. I counted 10 “ice cream” cakes being sacrificed like this before giving up counting.

Upon disembarkation, I could not wait to get the hell out of their sights. I still have not decided if I should be more annoyed with the girl or with her mother. Probably the mother. So rich and yet she couldn’t find it in her to properly train her daughter to be more reasonable and instead just take the easy way out by bribing her with snacks after snacks. 😐

so fast in Barcelona already? my sis is goin there on this Friday, arriving on Saturday. The place looks sunny from the picture. She thought of buying raincoat in case it rains, but I tink now no need liao..

LOL at the side-story. Maybe it was an off-day for the toddler or she doesn’t like flying. Maybe the mother is too focused on looking good. But really, what can you do in those situations 🙄 Sounds like a spoilt child. I am sure you weren’t the only one who took notice.

I’m sorry I laughed at your side story 😀 I know it’s not funny. To me it all boils down to parenting skills, which is practically non-existent these days. Anyway, I hope you enjoy your stay in Barcelona and I am looking forwards to your paella experience.

Greatz!! You have arrived Barcelona safely in one piece. I am bookmarking your contents, so write well and detailed so that I could follow your foot prints.

Oh God, I am still suffering of sleepiness in office after returning from Japan. I also took midnight flight and had a baby wailing all the way 7 hours of interrupted sleep. I was not sure who to curse too!!!?? Baby, mummy or papa? The mum is Indonesian and the papa is Japanese. How to avoid and prevent this disaster flights again?? I know, I know…we were babies once but we didn’t cry on planes. No wonder this Air Asia has a “Closed & Quiet” section where you pay more and babies and toddlers are banned! Period.

I’m amazed at how you know all these places names (which are difficult to pronounce and even more difficult to spell)…even for those you’re just passing through. I was more attracted to your side story than your first impression of Barcelona…haha! 😀 Oh dear, how many hours of the kid’s wailing did you have to endure? Didn’t any of the flight attendants tried to help to soothe the kid? I’ve seen the same scenario happening during church service where the mom will offer all kinds of snacks to buy their kids silence! >.<

Luckily it was the Paris – Barcelona flight, 1 and a half hours only. The attendant did come and try to help, but the kid was insufferable. The only way to stop her was to keep bribing her with snacks. >.<

So fast now in Barcelona already? Baru yesterday I was talking about McD in Istanbul.. Today I already see Barcelona (and Paris?), coz the airport name got Paris word..Wailing/crying kids on planes.. I tell you, before I got kids, I also very behtahan one, and I will look at them 1 kind.. But after having kids, trust me, my turn to “tau tap tap” (head low low).. Pot calling the kettle black.. hahahaha..

No lah, actually I’m not that annoyed with the occasional baby wailing, I know it is unavoidable one lah. I’m actually perfectly tolerable with babies. It is those “big babies”, those 3 sui gei, 4 sui ones, those that set me on my nerves. They are old enough to communicate their issues, so why would they prefer to shout and wail instead? I mean, you can cry that your ear hurts or you feel bored or what lah, then the adults can help you, but usually it is these “big babies” that will shout for hours non stop without communicating why. Seriously, very hard for other passengers not to feel annoyed.

Of course, one day when I have baby, I might face the same challenges. I think my solution would be to NOT get on a plane my kid can talk. 🙄

Hahahaha ok I laughed at the flight story and how you even took the time to draw the ice cream cake with the yellow bit. But I have to say that I have never heard of anyone just eating the ice cream and leaving the cone :P. The parts where you get ice cream and cone all in one bite are the best!
Enjoy Barcelona… look beautiful already!

Looks like the glass windows on the bus is reinforced with perforated stainless steel sheets. Wonder why.

Good to hear you are safely in Barcelona now. Enjoy yourself to the fullest! Remember to eat, eat, eat, eat…. The food there is the best! 🙂

Roughly how old is the little girl on the plane? If they are rich, they would think why not indulge their children in whatever they want. Not that easy to keep toddlers quiet on a plane if the child is very young.

wah.. i read your post this morning you were in Istanbul.. now at night, you left Istanbul and Paris and already in Barcelona now!! HOLA!! i love Barcelona, it’s a very beautiful place, and i remember i made many stops at Plaça de Catalunya, it seems to be the center of anything, haha..

i will forget about those “cake ice-cream”of the irritating nouveaux riches but i will tell you one thing i missed about Barcelona is the pintxos!!! OMG, drooling now even thinking about them~~